Certain effects often accompany a musical performance. For example, audio effects may be utilized to amplify, distort, or otherwise alter the sound of one or more instruments used in the musical performance. Also, for example, lighting effects may be utilized to highlight a performer, an area of the stage, and/or for dramatic effect during the musical performance. If an artist desires that one or more effects occur during the course of a musical performance, the artist may manually actuate a non-musical device to cause the effects to occur, may have someone else manually actuate a non-musical device to cause the effects to occur, or may time the effects to occur at certain points of the performance.
For example, a guitarist utilizing an effects pedal must manually step on a mechanical footswitch of the effects pedal to activate or deactivate the chorus effect thereof and must turn the potentiometers knobs thereof by hand to control the depth and/or rate parameters of the effects pedal. Accordingly, during a musical performance the musician has little control over the operating parameters of the existing audio effect systems other than controlling them with a nominally distracting footswitch or foot pedal or highly distracting rotation control knobs. Artist manual actuation of non-musical devices may present one or more drawbacks such as distractions from the performance. Having an additional person to manually actuate such devices may present one or more drawbacks such as distractions from the performance and/or costs. Timing the effects may present one or more drawbacks such as difficulty, inflexibility, and expense.